BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – YESTERDAY (Feb. 19), Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas, along with Minister of Health Hon. Rupert Herbert and other officials from the Ministry of Health made the first official visit to the new Pogson Medical and Healthcare Facility and were updated on the progress of the project.
The new centre houses the Pogson Hospital and the Sandy Point Health Centre and offers a multiplicity of health services to the town and neighbouring villages. The EC $5.7 million health facility boasts a pharmacy; trauma, triage and examination rooms; private patient rooms; an open ward; and a number of laboratories and sampling centres. Not only does the new edifice include a dental division and delivery room, but it also has a roomy staff lounge and conference room and is fully fitted with state-of-the-art medical equipment.
Prime Minister Douglas described the renovation of the hospital as an “unfolding of the policy of this administration in the development of medical and healthcare services in St. Kitts-Nevis”, adding that the facility reflects what the “new thinking” is in delivering healthcare from a hospital setting.
“We have recreated under one roof the Pogson Hospital and the Community Health Centre of Sandy Point, which deserves to be here, in the same compound. I believe that to a large extent as we look at how we can most cost-effectively provide medical and healthcare facilities for our people, we have to begin to think about how we are demonstrating healthcare delivery in Sandy Point.
“Apart from that, this is a very modern facility; it has the equipment and overall ambience and it brings an amount of comfort to those delivering healthcare services. I am very pleased that it has been built; it has taken some time but it’s now here. To a large extent, we are very proud of the work done here. We believe that we have seen a new spirit of cooperation as we provide improved healthcare services for Sandy Point [and the neighbouring communities].”
Dr. Douglas thanked the construction team from the Republic of China on Taiwan and the local labour force for their skilled workmanship in renovating the hospital. He also indicated that there may be a “very similar experience” in the Mary Charles Hospital in Molineux, bringing the hospital and health centre under one roof.
In an exclusive interview with SKNVibes, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Elvis Newton said the new healthcare facility is a great achievement for the health sector and shows a move toward the advancing healthcare services in the nation.
“We have been working on this for a very long time. We have had several challenges but we were able to overcome them. So, we are now at the point where we will make the facility functional and persons would soon be able to access services here.
“We are thinking about integrating healthcare. In many instances, we have had hospital care separate and apart from community health services and so this is an attempt to ensure that we have integrated holistic care being offered under one roof so if any individual requires services, they could be accessed in one place,” Newton added.
The Pogson Hospital was constructed in the early 1880’s when the medical house at Downing Street became too small to serve the surrounding communities. It was named after Edward Pogson, a farmer who donated the lands to the government for the construction of the hospital. Today, it stands as a landmark of the town and represents the pride of the people of Sandy Point.
